editorNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Scott Simon is one of America's most admired writers and broadcasters. He has reported from all fifty states, five continents, and ten wars, from El Salvador to Sarajevo to Afghanistan and Iraq. His books have chronicled character and characters, in war and peace, sports and art, tragedy and comedy. Simon's weekly show, Weekend Edition Saturday , has been called by the Washington Post , "the most literate, witty, moving, and just plain interesting news show on any dial," and by Brett Martin of Time-Out New York "the most eclectic, intelligent two hours of broadcasting on the airwaves." He has won every major award in broadcasting, including the Peabody, the Emmy, the Columbia-DuPont, the Ohio State Award, the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award, and the Sidney Hillman Award. Simon received the Presidential End Hunger Award for his coverage of the Ethiopian civil war and famine, and a special citation from the Peabody Awards for his weekly essays, which were cited as "consistentlyNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Scott SimonWed, 23 May 2018 11:00:03 +0000Scott Simonhttp://wesa.fm
Scott SimonWu Man is recognized as the world's greatest virtuoso on an instrument that is over 2000 years old: the Chinese pipa. Throughout her career, she's brought the pear-shaped, 24-fret instrument into the 21st century by collaborating with world class orchestras like the New York Philharmonic and groups like the Kronos Quartet and Yo-Yo Ma 's Silk Road Ensemble. "Jump out the box — I always wanted to do [that] as a musician," Wu Man tells NPR's Scott Simon before playing the main riff to Black Sabbath 's "Iron Man." "I personally really enjoy [trying] something different ... to use my instrument to communicate with the audience." She hopes her music will teach the world more about Chinese music and culture. Wu Man stopped by the NPR studios in Washington D.C. to discuss the history of the pipa, the increase of women playing it and how she experiments with different genres with NPR's Scott Simon. She also played a traditional pipa piece, "White Snow in Spring," live. Hear the performancePipa Virtuoso Wu Man Brings Ancient Chinese Music To The Presenthttp://wesa.fm/post/pipa-virtuoso-wu-man-brings-ancient-chinese-music-present
109022 as http://wesa.fmSat, 05 May 2018 12:22:00 +0000Pipa Virtuoso Wu Man Brings Ancient Chinese Music To The PresentScott SimonMeeting your college roommate used to be one of the anxieties of the first week of school. But these days, many freshmen meet in advance online and arrange to room together. Now, some schools have decided to bring back largely random pairings in the interest of broadening their students' horizons. Duke University announced their change earlier this year. "We believe that you'll enjoy the opportunity to meet someone you've not previously known and will have a great opportunity to explore your roommate's history, culture and interests," read the university's announcement of the change from Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs, and Steve Nowicki, dean and vice provost for undergraduate education. The university will stop honoring roommate requests and instead match roommates based on lifestyle habits, such as sleep schedules. Moneta says the decision to switch to was inspired by the "enclaves" of homogeneity he saw at Duke that seemingly stem from increasing numbers ofWhy Duke University Won't Honor Freshman Roommate Requests This Fallhttp://wesa.fm/post/why-duke-university-wont-honor-freshman-roommate-requests-fall
108020 as http://wesa.fmSat, 21 Apr 2018 12:00:00 +0000Why Duke University Won't Honor Freshman Roommate Requests This FallScott SimonOne spring morning in 2015, Barbara Lipska got up as usual, dyed her hair and went for a jog in her suburban Virginia neighborhood. But when she returned from a much longer than expected run, her husband Mirek was completely taken aback. "I was lost in my own neighborhood," Lipska says. "The hair dye that I put in my hair that morning dripped down my neck. I looked like a monster when I came back home." Although she now lucidly recalls that moment, at the time she was oblivious to her unusual appearance and behavior. Lipska studies the neuroscience of mental illness and brain development at the National Institute of Mental Health. In her work she's examined the molecular structure of the brains of people who were so afflicted with schizophrenia or other disorders that they took their own lives. And for two months in 2015, she developed similar symptoms of dementia and schizophrenia — only to learn they were the effects of cancerous tumors, growing in her brain. A melanoma that had'The Neuroscientist Who Lost Her Mind' Returns From Madnesshttp://wesa.fm/post/neuroscientist-who-lost-her-mind-returns-madness
106452 as http://wesa.fmSat, 31 Mar 2018 12:22:00 +0000'The Neuroscientist Who Lost Her Mind' Returns From MadnessScott SimonCopyright 2018 NPR. To see more, visit SCOTT SIMON, HOST: A hero died overnight. Lieutenant Colonel Arnaud Beltrame was 45 years old and a gendarme, a French police officer. Yesterday, a man who said he was aligned with ISIS hijacked a car in southern France, killed someone, burst into a supermarket, where he killed two more people, and took customers hostage. Lieutenant Colonel Beltrame persuaded the gunman to release a woman being used as a human shield in exchange for making himself a hostage. The officer left his mobile phone on a table so police could hear what happened inside. They heard shots. A tactical team swarmed into the market. The gunman was killed, but Arnaud Beltrame was injured and died last night. France's interior minister, Gerard Collomb, said of the lieutenant colonel, he died for his country. France will never forget his heroism, his bravery, his sacrifice. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.French Police Officer Who Traded Himself For A Hostage Has Diedhttp://wesa.fm/post/french-police-officer-who-traded-himself-hostage-has-died
105938 as http://wesa.fmSat, 24 Mar 2018 11:27:00 +0000French Police Officer Who Traded Himself For A Hostage Has DiedScott SimonRavyn Lenae's Music Honors The Merry-Go-Round Of Lovehttp://wesa.fm/post/ravyn-lenaes-music-honors-merry-go-round-love
105943 as http://wesa.fmSat, 24 Mar 2018 11:27:00 +0000Ravyn Lenae's Music Honors The Merry-Go-Round Of LoveScott SimonPaul Thorn is a natural-born Southern storyteller with humble stage banter and musical delivery that's gritty and gruff. Since his 1997 debut album, Hammer and Nail, Thorn has given fans plenty of bluesy, roots-rock music with songs like "Pimps and Preachers" and " What the Hell Is Goin' On ." Thorn's latest album, Don't Let The Devil Ride , out March 23, is a return to his childhood in the churches of Tupelo, Miss. Thorn grew up singing and playing tambourine in his father's Pentecostal church. Traveling with his father to perform, Thorn especially enjoyed visiting black churches because the music of those services sounded like rhythm and blues. "That was the type that really got into my head," Thorn says. Thorn performed with his tambourine every night before his father preached. One night, he got a surprise. "They took up an offering for me," Thorn says. "After I had sang my songs, I had a whole tambourine full of dollar bills, so that was my first paying gig." Thorn draws on thesePaul Thorn Revisits His Gospel Roots http://wesa.fm/post/paul-thorn-revisits-his-gospel-roots
105393 as http://wesa.fmSat, 17 Mar 2018 12:13:00 +0000Paul Thorn Revisits His Gospel Roots Scott Simonhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnPLrWGOLJ4 Chess Records is an American institution. Founded in Chicago by Phil and Leonard Chess in the 1950s, it became the label that launched Howlin' Wolf , Muddy Waters and Bo Diddley . Now, Canadian singer Elise LeGrow is taking on the label's catalog on her debut album: Playing Chess features covers of songs made famous by Chuck Berry , Etta James , Sugar Pie DeSanto , The Moonglows and more. "Etta James has been one of my favorite singers for a very long time and, of course, I was aware of Chuck Berry's hits. But I didn't realize that the common thread there was Chess," LeGrow tells NPR's Scott Simon. The album features guest appearances from the Dap-Kings and, on the track "Long, Lonely Nights," Questlove and Captain Kirk Douglas from The Roots . Questlove's father, Lee Andrews, co-wrote that ballad back in 1965. As she put together the track list, LeGrow says, old memories collided with some new surprises. Now 30, she'd heard Chuck Berry's Elise LeGrow's 'Playing Chess' Honors Blues And R&B Greatshttp://wesa.fm/post/elise-legrows-playing-chess-honors-blues-and-rb-greats
103255 as http://wesa.fmSat, 17 Feb 2018 11:28:00 +0000Scott SimonA dog named Abby is back from the dead. Abby, a black Lab mix, wandered away from her home in Apollo, Pa., outside Pittsburgh, 10 years ago. Abby's owner, Debra Suierveld, and her children looked for their dog but couldn't find her, accepted her loss and had her declared deceased. And then, 10 years later, they got a call from an animal shelter. "They said, 'We have your dog,' " Suierveld tells NPR's Scott Simon. "And I said, 'That's impossible.' " The shelter told her they had a female black Lab mix. Suierveld, who had gotten other dogs since Abby's disappearance — including another black Lab — said her dog was at home. But the shelter had run the dog's identification microchip — and her name was Abby, they said. Suierveld was shocked. "I was like, 'Abby?' I said, 'I haven't seen her for 10 years,' " Suierveld says. Once Abby rejoined their family, it was almost as if she had never left. "She settled right it, I'd say," Suierveld says. "The first night, I have other dogs, and they10 Years After She Went Missing, A Black Lab Is Returned To Her Ownershttp://wesa.fm/post/10-years-after-she-went-missing-black-lab-returned-her-owners
102691 as http://wesa.fmSat, 10 Feb 2018 13:02:00 +000010 Years After She Went Missing, A Black Lab Is Returned To Her OwnersScott SimonReworking Trauma: Mary Gauthier Tells Veteran Stories On 'Rifles & Rosary Beads'http://wesa.fm/post/reworking-trauma-mary-gauthier-tells-veteran-stories-rifles-rosary-beads
101628 as http://wesa.fmSat, 27 Jan 2018 13:21:00 +0000Scott SimonViolent crime is down in America's big cities. It may not seem so if you watch crime dramas like CSI , NCIS or Chicago P.D. , but homicide, assault and rapes have decreased in big cities since the 1970s. Even Chicago had a 16 percent decline in murders last year, to 650. (In 1974, the city had 970 homicides.) Patrick Sharkey, chair of NYU's sociology department and scientific director of Crime Lab New York , attributes the change, in part, to something that happened in the 1990s. He says, "The entire country, really kind of for the first time in a while, saw violence as a national crisis and mobilized to deal with it." Sharkey's new book is Uneasy Peace: The Great Crime Decline, the Renewal of City Life, and the Next War on Violence . Interview Highlights On how the country mobilized to reduce crime in the 1990s That took many forms. It took the form of more police on the street and more aggressive policing, more aggressive prosecution, shutting down open-air drug markets. But anotherCrime Is Down In American Cities, And 'Uneasy Peace' Explains Whyhttp://wesa.fm/post/crime-down-american-cities-and-uneasy-peace-explains-why
101059 as http://wesa.fmSat, 20 Jan 2018 12:29:00 +0000Crime Is Down In American Cities, And 'Uneasy Peace' Explains WhyScott SimonBen Shirley's story is one of redemption. He'd been playing bass in bars, clubs and arenas in the Los Angeles area since he was 15 when he fell down a path of drugs and alcohol. Four bottles of vodka and $360 worth of heroin a day brought him down hard on Skid Row. It was at the non-profit The Midnight Mission where Shirley turned his life around in 2011. Now, at 53, he's an undergrad in The San Francisco Conservatory of Music's program of Technology and Applied Composition. He debuted an original piece, "We Need Darkness to See the Stars," earlier this month. Shirley spoke to NPR's Scott Simon about how music helped him heal, and why the holidays can be an especially hard time for those recovering from addiction. "The best that I have is that, 'I've been there,'" Shirley says. "If you let it, life will absolutely explode for you in ways you could never imagine. Chances are you're already on a path to something brand new and that other door's opened." Listen to the entire interview atFrom Skid Row To The San Francisco Conservatory Of Musichttp://wesa.fm/post/skid-row-san-francisco-conservatory-music
99270 as http://wesa.fmSat, 23 Dec 2017 13:11:00 +0000From Skid Row To The San Francisco Conservatory Of MusicScott SimonThe U.S. foster care system is overwhelmed, in part because America's opioid crisis is overwhelming. Thousands of children have had to be taken out of the care of parents or a parent who is addicted. Indiana is among the states that have seen the largest one-year increase in the number of children who need foster care. Judge Marilyn Moores, who heads the juvenile court in Marion County, which includes Indianapolis, says the health crisis is straining resources in Indiana. "We've gone from having 2,500 children in care, three years ago, to having 5,500 kids in care. It has just exploded our systems," Moores says. While laws in all U.S. states require that child welfare agencies make "reasonable efforts" to reunify parents with their children, Moores says that process can be especially traumatic for children whose parents often relapse. She says that more legal consideration should be paid to the child's rights and safety and that "right now, that balance does not tip legally in favor ofThe Foster Care System Is Flooded With Children Of The Opioid Epidemichttp://wesa.fm/post/foster-care-system-flooded-children-opioid-epidemic
99267 as http://wesa.fmSat, 23 Dec 2017 13:11:00 +0000The Foster Care System Is Flooded With Children Of The Opioid EpidemicScott SimonSocial media platforms can connect people across the globe — and terrorize people next door. In a new novel, Ricky Graves is a young man coming to terms with his sexual orientation in a small New Hampshire town. He's tormented by a jerk named Wesley, until Ricky kills him — and then himself. The news media descend. And after they've gone on to the next sad crime, Ricky's pregnant sister, Alyssa, returns to the town she fled so that she and her shattered mother can get a hold on the terrible event that has taken two lives, and understand the son and brother they loved. The Lost Prayers Of Ricky Graves is an Amazon Best Book of the Month for December, a novel partly told by emails and chat-room dialogues. It's James Han Mattson's first novel — he's a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop who now teaches writing at The George Washington University. Mattson was inspired in part by the case of Tyler Clementi , who committed suicide after his college roommate publicly outed his intimateIn A New Novel, The 'Lost Prayers' Of A Gay Teen Bullied To Deathhttp://wesa.fm/post/new-novel-lost-prayers-gay-teen-bullied-death
98170 as http://wesa.fmSat, 09 Dec 2017 12:56:00 +0000In A New Novel, The 'Lost Prayers' Of A Gay Teen Bullied To DeathScott SimonCopyright 2018 NPR. To see more, visit SCOTT SIMON, HOST: On Monday morning, a couple of people could show up at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau - both of them claiming to run it. Richard Cordray, who had been the director, stepped aside, named his interim successor. But last night, President Trump announced his own pick for acting director. And now confusion reigns. Who else to turn to but NPR's White House correspondent Tamara Keith? Tam, thanks so much for being with us. TAMARA KEITH, BYLINE: Glad to be with you. SIMON: Let's remind ourselves - Consumer Financial Protection Bureau created in 2010, a independent consumer watchdog. How did it find itself at the center of this drama? KEITH: Yes. So it was created as part of the Dodd-Frank Act and came in the wake of the financial crisis. And it has been controversial ever since its creation. It was the idea of Elizabeth Warren, now a senator, and it has been a fight every single step of the way. The financial services industryExplaining The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Confusionhttp://wesa.fm/post/explaining-consumer-financial-protection-bureau-confusion
97134 as http://wesa.fmSat, 25 Nov 2017 21:03:00 +0000Explaining The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ConfusionScott SimonA congressional candidate in Florida drew a little ridicule this week. Bettina Rodriguez Aguilera, one of the Republicans in the crowded field in Florida's 27th Congressional District, said in 2009 that she was taken aboard a spaceship when she was 7 years old. She does not mean at Disney World. "I went in," she says in a 2009 Spanish language interview that appeared on YouTube this week. "There were some round seats that were there, and some quartz rocks that controlled the ship, not like airplanes. No indeed. On airplanes these days, you have to pay extra for quartz rocks. Aguilera says she met three beings aboard the ship, two women and a man, all blond and tall, which sounds a little like the Swedish pop group ABBA. She says that their arms were outstretched, like the Christ the Redeemer statue that overlooks Rio, and that the beings have communicated with her ever since, telepathically. Well, that way you avoid roaming charges. When the Miami Herald called the candidate for aClose Encounters With Congress? http://wesa.fm/post/close-encounters-congress
94482 as http://wesa.fmSat, 21 Oct 2017 12:28:00 +0000Close Encounters With Congress? Scott SimonMost of us would have to look up the name of J.D. Tippit. He was the Dallas police officer shot and killed in 1963, when he tried to apprehend the man who assassinated President John F. Kennedy. Or Tim McCarthy, the Secret Service agent who took a bullet fired at President Ronald Reagan in 1981. But Norman Mailer, one of America's great authors, wrote a massive biography of the man who shot J.D. Tippit and John F. Kennedy. Every aspect of the life of the man who shot Tim McCarthy has been followed for years. Both men, with blood from history on their hands, are featured as characters in a Stephen Sondheim musical. The men who committed mass murder in Charleston, S.C., Newtown, Conn., and Orlando, Fla., became household names for weeks. Murderers can become famous. People who save lives can be footnotes. As much of America woke to the news this week of the killings in Las Vegas, Zeynep Tufekci, the social scientist who writes on communications technology and is often a guest on WeekendWe Remember The Wrong Names After Tragedies. Who's To Blame? http://wesa.fm/post/we-remember-wrong-names-after-tragedies-whos-blame
93697 as http://wesa.fmSat, 07 Oct 2017 08:36:00 +0000We Remember The Wrong Names After Tragedies. Who's To Blame? Scott SimonHugh Hefner made history, and then tripped over it. When I was growing up in Chicago, the formidable women who were my mother's friends considered Playboy a good place to work for a single woman. Women at the Playboy Club were well-paid, got chauffeured home in cabs, and customers — stars, politicians, even, it was rumored, spoiled Middle Eastern princes — were thrown out if they weren't gentlemen. My Auntie Abba trained Playboy bunnies. When Gloria Steinem and others said the bunny costume, which wrenched a woman's bodice upwards, so her chest resembled ice cream scoops, were Exhibit A in the way Hugh Hefner made women into idealized sex objects, my Auntie Abba sniffed and said, "Well they wear some pretty ridiculous costumes at the Metropolitan Opera, too." Hugh Hefner was considered progressive and hip, in a time of button-down shirts and bigotry. Playboy printed articles by Nobel laureates on the flip side of foldouts. Hugh Hefner hired the late Dick Gregory and other black comicsHugh Hefner: Looking Back At A Controversial Lifehttp://wesa.fm/post/hugh-hefner-looking-back-controversial-life
93314 as http://wesa.fmSat, 30 Sep 2017 11:02:00 +0000Hugh Hefner: Looking Back At A Controversial LifeScott Simonhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PX7AyTf1B5k In the 1970s, fans of hard rock were no strangers to the impressive acoustic guitar scrambling of Nancy Wilson, perhaps best captured in the opening of the song "Crazy On You" by Heart . Nancy Wilson and her sister, Ann, were the core of that band. Its albums, like Dreamboat Annie and Little Queen, became part of the rock canon. Younger audiences might recognize Heart's ever-iconic song "Barracuda," which was featured in the animated film Shrek and on American Idol and Dancing with the Stars . Decades later, Nancy Wilson is now rocking out in a new supergroup called Roadcase Royale, which includes Liv Warfield of Prince 's New Power Generation. Roadcase Royale's debut album, First Things First , comes out Sept. 22, and includes original songs alongside some revisited Heart classics. Wilson spoke with NPR's Scott Simon about the creation of the supergroup, the fallout with her sister Ann and the impact her career has had on her audience. YouHeart's Nancy Wilson On Love Songs, Sisterhood And Her New Supergrouphttp://wesa.fm/post/hearts-nancy-wilson-love-songs-sisterhood-and-her-new-supergroup
92624 as http://wesa.fmSat, 16 Sep 2017 12:08:00 +0000Heart's Nancy Wilson On Love Songs, Sisterhood And Her New SupergroupScott SimonWhen crisis strikes, leaders often call for sacrifice. In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey and in these days before Hurricane Irma churns ashore in Florida, we've seen innumerable Americans volunteer, sacrifice and even risk their lives to help others. It might be too easy to contrast that generous spirit with the strict practices of major air carriers. But airlines make it pretty much irresistible. When Florida Gov. Rick Scott advised people who may be in the path of Hurricane Irma to "leave now," it posed a challenge for those who tried to fly out of airports in southern Florida. Many found the price of a single seat to fly, say, just from Miami to New York could cost more than $3,000. For a family of four, that is as much as their annual budget for groceries. Complaints burst onto social media platforms: A man named Joseph Pep Nodarse tweeted , "Totally unacceptable, a $358 flight from Miami to NYC went up to $3578. Why should expect anything decent from these airlines???" That wasWith A Hurricane Approaching Florida, Airline Algorithms Show No Sympathyhttp://wesa.fm/post/hurricane-approaching-florida-airline-algorithms-show-no-sympathy
92285 as http://wesa.fmSat, 09 Sep 2017 12:06:00 +0000With A Hurricane Approaching Florida, Airline Algorithms Show No SympathyScott SimonJerry Lewis could make people laugh with a sneeze. My mother remembered being in an old freight elevator with Jerry at the Chez Paree nightclub in Chicago as it rose slowly in silence to the show floor. Jerry Lewis sneezed. He didn't twist his lips or roll his eyes. Jerry just sneezed: and the waiters, janitors, and showgirls in the elevator erupted in laughter. When Jerry Lewis died this week, at the age of 91, he was acclaimed as a clown, a genius, a humanitarian and egomaniac, all in the same breath. I knew Jerry Lewis slightly as a child, and later as a reporter. He gave my father a small role in the first film he directed, 1960's The Bellboy. My father's lines lasted half a minute on screen, but years later, Jerry heard my father was down on his luck and hired him to be a straight man for half a dozen of his club appearances. Jerry Lewis didn't give my father a handout or sermons, but a job. It was a way of telling him: you're still in the game. I remember Jerry as being grandly,Jerry Lewis Was Many Things, But He Was Not A Foolhttp://wesa.fm/post/jerry-lewis-was-many-things-he-was-not-fool
91538 as http://wesa.fmSat, 26 Aug 2017 14:18:00 +0000Jerry Lewis Was Many Things, But He Was Not A Fool